Nothing Too Sophisticated was written by the early rock and rollers. When it comes to artists like Chuck Berry and Little Richard, the majority of their beloved classics revolved around a three-chord vamp and relied on the energy they brought to the recording whenever it began. Even though many musicians in rock’s prime made the most of what they had, Keith Richards believed that one musician could have competed with the best in classical music.
Richards, on the other hand, has always had a far more eclectic musical taste than just rock and roll. Throughout his time with The Rolling Stones, Keef was known for making great strides to bring different genres into the mix, mixing the sounds of pop music with the likes of country music when he got together with Gram Parsons during the 1970s.
Even though the band had a habit of relying on Chuck Berry’s traditions in their early days, Richards maintained that every piece of his musical development always came back to the blues. Richards loved the sounds of artists like Howlin Wolf and Buddy Guy, putting all the sorrow they faced into song whenever they strapped on their instruments while studying under the best players in the Chicago area.
None of the blues musicians Richards listened to in the 1960s struck him as strongly as Robert Johnson. Having passed away decades before The Stones had made it big, Johnson was known to be one of the most awe-inspiring blues musicians to pick up the instrument, putting together a handful of chords and making songs that could tear your heart out on tracks like ‘Crossroads’.
While many guitarists, such as Eric Clapton, would borrow a few tricks from Johnson’s playing, Richards wanted to shed more light on his idol, even covering the blues legend on Let It Bleed with their countrified version of ‘Love in Vain’. Unlike other blues guitarists who used the same licks over and over, Richards believed that many of Johnson’s lead breaks could have been studied on the same level as classical composers.
Richards remembered how intricate Johnson’s lead breaks could be in his book Life, saying, “Robert Johnson was like an orchestra all by himself.” Some of his best work is almost Bach-like in its structure… He gave you a platform to work on, no doubt as he did to Muddy [Waters] and the other guys we were listening to”.
While Johnson’s music may not have taken as many musical left turns as a Bach chorale, it stems from how he interprets many of his songs. Johnson plays his guitar as if it’s an extension of his personality on tracks like ‘Me and the Devil Blues,’ making different left turns and turning every three-chord rave-up into one of the most emotional experiences one can have while wearing headphones.
For all of Johnson’s influence on legions of guitarists, it was always about passing on the tradition to the next generation, with everyone from Buddy Guy to Muddy Waters to Keith Richards attempting to recreate his classic sound. Whereas most musicians believe there are only so many directions to take the blues, artists like Johnson demonstrate that there are other ways to twist those three chords around to sound fresh and exciting again.
